"Report!"
The order was barked, competing with the ambiance as Colonel Vorega scrambled across the oscillating deck and onto the bridge. A momentary wave of relief swept across her as she dropped herself into her seat, the stability controls in the Mon Calamari design giving her a few moments of blessed relief from the constant rolling of the ship under the strain of the attack.
"An Imperial Cruiser, Colonel," came the response from the Lieutenant who'd been supervising the bridge this shift. "Strike-class. They dropped out of Hyperspace and immediately deployed fighters. Eyeballs and squints: a full squadron of each. Valkyries and Rogues are deployed, and the civilian ships are retreating towards the predesignated jump vector."
A curt nod was thrown in the officer's direction, confirming that he had complied thus far with what her orders had been. This was something that they had performed readiness drills and practice runs in preparation for; even so, those simulations were far from accurate representations of the real thing. They didn't convey the same dread and anguish over having been discovered that reality provided now in abundance. She muttered a curse under her breath, eyes narrowing at the holographic depiction of the approaching ship. "They knew we were here," she mused.
The Lieutenant's momentary hesitation was made all the more dramatic by the urgency of the situation. "That seems likely."
The ship rocked again as fire from the the Imperial Cruiser Eraser pounded the Valiant's shields with turbo-laser fire, as the Mon Calamari ship swung her flank around to interpose between the Imperials and the retreating Jedi. Small mercy came to Vorega's mind as she observed the thankfully minimal Imperial forces. Had they known for certain that the Rebels were here - and had they known the precious cargo that the Valiant defended - they would have sent a far more sizable Force. This was a glorified reconnaissance run; for that, Leela was grateful.
Even recon runs could make for a nasty mess if given the chance, however. "Get me Rogue Leader on the comm," she instructed. Silently her Bothan communications officer complied; an amber indicator flickered into life on the arm of her chair as the channel became active. "I have far too many red dots on my screen, Lead," she chastised. "Planning on doing anything about that any time soon?"
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